The Great Canadian Sports Attendance, Marketing and TV Ratings Thread

[JHikka]

NHL Playoff Bonus Western Conference Game 1: Minnesota Wild at Winnipeg Jets (NBCSN, 9:35 PM, 25 min.)
– 0.521 million viewers (#74)
– 0.33 HH (#73)
– 0.22 A18-49 (#44)
– 0.20 A18-34 (#28)
– 0.22 A25-54 (#58)

NHL Quarterfinals Western Conference Game 1: Los Angeles Kings at Vegas Golden Knights (NBCSN, 10:00 PM, 170 min.)
– 0.603 million viewers (#66)
– 0.35 HH (#69)
– 0.28 A18-49 (#26)
– 0.30 A18-34 (#14)
– 0.26 A25-54 (#46)
One year ago (4/12/17): Blues-Wild 502,000 viewers
Two years ago (4/13/16): Blackhawks-Blues 638,000 viewers

NHL Quarterfinals Eastern Conference Game 1: Philadelphia Flyers at Pittsburgh Penguins (NBCSN, 7:04 PM, 151 min.)
– 0.632 million viewers (#62)
– 0.38 HH (#66)
– 0.26 A18-49 (#34)
– 0.25 A18-34 (#19)
– 0.27 A25-54 (#44)
One year ago (4/12/17): Rangers-Canadiens 445,000 viewers
Two years ago (4/13/16): Red Wings-Lightning 612,000 viewers

http://programminginsider.com/wednes...rom-last-year/

[elly63]

Thought this was The Great Canadian Sports Attendance, Marketing and TV Ratings Thread.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by elly63

Thought this was The Great Canadian Sports Attendance, Marketing and TV Ratings Thread.

Nothing posted for Canadian TV figures yet. These games feature Canadian teams. Can typically take Canadian-team matchups and see how they're relevant to American viewing figures, which are in turn relevant for Canadian viewing figures.

As an example, NBCSN is up 17% over last year through the playoffs so far in US viewing totals (662K/game). This can be compared to potential Sportsnet/CBC ratings when they're released.

--------------------

Before we get Raptors ratings against the Wizards:

https://www.raptorshq.com/2018/3/13/...ouston-rockets

Raptors-Rockets was the most-watched Raps regular season game in Canada ever

Originally Posted by RaptorsHQ

Add the following to the list of records the Raptors are smashing this season.

According to Sportsnet, over 1.67 million people watched at least some part of Friday night’s Toronto vs. Houston Battle of the One-Seeds. The average number of eyeballs on the screen while Raptors basketball was on settled to a nice 552,000. And — much to delight of those jamokes who always want to tell you that you only need to watch the last two minutes of a basketball game to really get it — the viewership peaked at 1.1 million in the contest’s final minutes. That’s a lot of people.

In fact, as reported by Sportsnet, these numbers make it the most-watched Raptors regular season game in Canada..... ever. I say again: in forever.

[JHikka]

Since we're on the NBA:

Courtesy of Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell):


And the Raptors for those four record-breaking years:

2014-2015: 19,751 (99.8%)
2015-2016: 19,825 (100.1%)
2016-2017: 19,830 (100.2%)
2017-2018: 19,839 (100.2%)

[Denscity]

I wonder how many Canadians outside of southern Ontario watch the Raptors?

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Denscity

I wonder how many Canadians outside of southern Ontario watch the Raptors?

Local/regional ratings for any sport in Canada are going to be next to impossible to find.

------------------------
@BillBriouxTV
Why Rogers needs Leafs to bounce back:
THURS o'nites
CBC Leafs-Bruins 2304k
SNet Avs-Nash 480k;

WED o'nites
SNet Jets-Min 1169k
CBC Philly-Pitt 580k
LA-Vegas 598k

[elly63]

Originally Posted by Denscity

I wonder how many Canadians outside of southern Ontario watch the Raptors?

Can't be that many, 552,000 (most watched Raptors regular season game) was almost exactly (553k) the average rating for a CFL regular season game in 2016. But I guess it's all relative if TFC was averaging 92k for a regular season game. For the most part it is a sports industry wide trend, ratings going down.

[blueandgoldguy]

Raptors have some people outside the GTA that watch some or most of their games, but for whatever reason, they have not captured the attention of sports fans across the country like the Jays have. There are probably hundreds of thousands of Jays fans on the prairies and the west coast that watch a decent number of games throughout the season. Tens of thousands attend Jays games in Seattle from the Lower Mainland while thousands attend Jays games in Minneapolis from Manitoba and Northwest Ontario.

Outside the playoffs, I suspect the number of people watching Raptors games in western Canada numbers in the tens of thousands while those catching games in places like Minneapolis and Portland might number in the hundreds.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by blueandgoldguy

Raptors have some people outside the GTA that watch some or most of their games, but for whatever reason, they have not captured the attention of sports fans across the country like the Jays have. There are probably hundreds of thousands of Jays fans on the prairies and the west coast that watch a decent number of games throughout the season. Tens of thousands attend Jays games in Seattle from the Lower Mainland while thousands attend Jays games in Minneapolis from Manitoba and Northwest Ontario.

That mass of people in the GTA can really drive ratings. When the Jays were on their run their numbers were fantastic. When they came back to earth so did their ratings. Not sure if they slipped to their pre-run numbers of being behind the CFL. I think they may still be ahead.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by blueandgoldguy

Raptors have some people outside the GTA that watch some or most of their games, but for whatever reason, they have not captured the attention of sports fans across the country like the Jays have. There are probably hundreds of thousands of Jays fans on the prairies and the west coast that watch a decent number of games throughout the season. Tens of thousands attend Jays games in Seattle from the Lower Mainland while thousands attend Jays games in Minneapolis from Manitoba and Northwest Ontario.

Outside the playoffs, I suspect the number of people watching Raptors games in western Canada numbers in the tens of thousands while those catching games in places like Minneapolis and Portland might number in the hundreds.

That's just because they simply haven't been around as long as the Jays have.

There is no shortage of Canadians from coast to coast, even thousands of km from Toronto, who are keen on living the "big time U.S. sports league" dream vicariously through a "Canada's team" based in Toronto.

With the NBA being a rapidly ascendant sports property stateside (and that effect rebounding in Canada), unless the Raptors are horrible both on and off the court, they're very likely to develop a similar cross-Canada fandom like the Jays did.

Just give it time.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by elly63

Can't be that many, 552,000 (most watched Raptors regular season game) was almost exactly (553k) the average rating for a CFL regular season game in 2016.

This number is also the average for regional Leafs broadcasts through the regular season.

"And Sportsnet’s regional Leafs broadcasts were up 32 per cent, to an average audience of 511,000. That gets them back to roughly where they were in 2014-15. TSN’s Leafs broadcasts were up 20 per cent." [Source]

Originally Posted by blueandgoldguy

Raptors have some people outside the GTA that watch some or most of their games, but for whatever reason, they have not captured the attention of sports fans across the country like the Jays have.

This article (from 2016) elaborates on this a bit:

"The game was watched by an average audience of 1.8 million viewers on TSN, according to overnight Numeris numbers from Bell Media. The numbers were released late this week due to the Victoria Day holiday.

Viewership records have continued to fall throughout the NBA Playoffs this season, with game seven in the first round against the Indiana Pacers bringing in 1.5 million viewers on Sportsnet. The same average number tuned in to see the Raptors take down the Miami Heat in game seven on TSN in the last round.

However, Monday night’s game was the most-watched program on Canadian TV for the night, as well as the most-watched program of the day overall in the Greater Toronto Area, achieving a 36.5% share in the region."

At this time in 2016, the Raptors were outdrawing HNIC matchups between Tampa Bay/Pittsburgh, as well as the Canada Men's National Team at the World Hockey Championships:

"Here are the most-watched sports events on English-language television over the holiday weekend, according to Numeris overnight ratings:

1. NBA, Cavaliers at Raptors, Monday, TSN: 1,800,000
2. NBA, Cavaliers at Raptors, Saturday, Sportsnet: 1,430,000
3. Hockey worlds, Canada vs. Finland final, Sunday, TSN: 1,365,000
4. NHL, Lightning at Penguins, Sunday, CBC: 1,340,000
5. NHL, Penguins at Lightning, Friday, CBC: 1,100,000
6. NHL, Sharks at Blues, Monday, CBC: 999,000
7. NHL, Blues at Sharks, Saturday, CBC: 900,000
8. MLB, Blue Jays at Twins, Friday, Sportsnet One: 725,000
9. Hockey worlds, Canada vs. U.S. semifinal, Saturday, TSN: 688,000
10. MLB, Blue Jays at Twins, Sunday, Sportsnet: 634,000"
[Source]

If the Raptors make another deep push into the playoffs they'll likely outdraw HNIC depending on how far the Leafs/Jets go. A Leafs first round match in 2018 outdraws the record viewing audience for a Raptors conference final game.

Likewise, it's entirely plausible that a Raptors playoff game outdraws a Jets playoff game.

[esquire]

^ If the Raptors won a NBA championship that would probably put them in a similar stratosphere as the Jays.

As things stand people in Winnipeg are barely aware of the Raptors. There's a small cohort of mainly young men 12-30 who follow them but it's a niche audience.

Compare that with the Blue Jays where the moment they start winning, they become a Big Deal here. They are easily the most popular non-local team and the only such team with a significant following here. The Raptors are nowhere near that level, although as I said, a championship run or two could certainly change that.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Just give it time.

It's been 22 years, it's not like they're an expansion team.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ If the Raptors won a NBA championship that would probably put them in a similar stratosphere as the Jays.

As things stand people in Winnipeg are barely aware of the Raptors. There's a small cohort of mainly young men 12-30 who follow them but it's a niche audience.

Compare that with the Blue Jays where the moment they start winning, they become a Big Deal here. They are easily the most popular non-local team and the only such team with a significant following here. The Raptors are nowhere near that level, although as I said, a championship run or two could certainly change that.

Agree with most of that and while the Jays have become Canada's team (and the Raps have not) the Jays following rapidly diminishes when they're not in the hunt. I still believe that is because of the mass of GTA market which can turn on and off like a switch.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by elly63

Agree with most of that and while the Jays have become Canada's team (and the Raps have not) the Jays following rapidly diminishes when they're not in the hunt. I still believe that is because of the mass of GTA market which can turn on and off like a switch.

It's kind of funny, it's not like Winnipeggers rabidly follow MLB even when the Jays aren't in the hunt. They only seem to care when the Jays are doing well.

Conversely, the NBA simply doesn't hold broad appeal. There are young men who follow the NBA regardless of how the Raptors are doing, but even if the Raptors are doing well you don't suddenly start seeing little old ladies wearing Raptors gear the same way you do with the Jays when they're doing well.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by esquire

It's kind of funny, it's not like Winnipeggers rabidly follow MLB even when the Jays aren't in the hunt. They only seem to care when the Jays are doing well.

Conversely, the NBA simply doesn't hold broad appeal. There are young men who follow the NBA regardless of how the Raptors are doing, but even if the Raptors are doing well you don't suddenly start seeing little old ladies wearing Raptors gear the same way you do with the Jays when they're doing well.

Jays are simply an easier team and sport to bandwagon.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by JHikka

Jays are simply an easier team and sport to bandwagon.

How does that work?

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by elly63

How does that work?

See:

Originally Posted by esquire

Conversely, the NBA simply doesn't hold broad appeal. There are young men who follow the NBA regardless of how the Raptors are doing, but even if the Raptors are doing well you don't suddenly start seeing little old ladies wearing Raptors gear the same way you do with the Jays when they're doing well.

It's anecdotal, but when the Jays are doing well their merch pops up everywhere. Same for the Leafs...casuals/non-fans pay attention more when they're doing well, and this shows in ratings. Jays get higher playoff ratings than non-Canada SCF games and Grey Cups.

At their height in 2015, the Jays were pulling in playoff averages between 4.5M/5.0M per game, compared to low 4Ms for Grey Cups and the 2.67M average for the SCF between Pittsburgh/Nashville. In fact, in 2017 the highest rated NHL broadcast was Game 7 between Ottawa/Pittsburgh which pulled in 4.29M - the Jays had three playoff games in 2015 higher than that, and one higher than that in 2016.

It's either a bandwagon or they're consistently the most popular non-hockey team in the country.

[esquire]

^ But what makes them an easier team and sport to bandwagon?

Personally I don't think it's about it being an easier team and sport to bandwagon, I think it's just a broad cultural preference for baseball. I simply don't think basketball resonates nearly as much. Which is funny because basketball is hardly exotic or novel, probably nearly everyone in Canada has played it at some point in their lives.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ But what makes them an easier team and sport to bandwagon?
...
Personally I don't think it's about it being an easier team and sport to bandwagon, I think it's just a broad cultural preference for baseball. I simply don't think basketball resonates nearly as much.

That's essentially the answer i'm reaching. Baseball is more accessible for the majority of Canadians than basketball, for whatever cultural reasons we want or don't want to get in to.